Sunday 31 August 2014

HakoSorta...

1969 KPGC10 Nissan Skyline GT-R!

..No...
..No.. maybe not. haha

This bloody adorable little thing is actually a 1986 SS40T Suzuki Mightyboy - The Kei-class FWD bonneted 'ute' based on Suzuki's Alto.

All the familiar Hakosuka details are there; From the colour and imitation chrome bumpers, to the tail-lights, spoiler, flares, watanabe's, and so on...

..fkn hilarious little thing. Would drive!

Currently for sale at a dealer in japan.. with the only downside being i likely cant afford it!

Just a bit of fun.


Sunday 24 August 2014

Hiro V-1..

Here's something I picked up in recent months, after wanting a set for quite some time. Had been holding out for a good set (complete/condition/sizes), and unfortunately couldn't afford two NOS sets that went through Yahoo in that time.. :(
These are in great original shape overall though, and look as though they were pulled off a car and sat since the 80's..!

SSR Hiro Engineering Hiro V-1.
15x6.5, A (+8)
15x7, A (+1)
1987.
Early standard-reverse V-1's, with the old polished caps and single-colour faces..

These were made by SSR for Hiro Engineering, in the same way that wheels were done for Takechi Project or Hasemi. This makes them a little different to something like the Formula mesh, EX-C's, Bang Vec, etc; as those were sold as SSR's; but there was no hiding the fact these are SSR's through and through..

I just absolutely love these. Ridiculous design, properly directional, bright centre-cap plates, electron lock caps, and so on..

Nice and tidy for their age.

Plates, caps, and collars.
The caps are the same as the ones used on the regular EX-C Mesh/Fin, and in this case the 'tall' style. They're then the early version of that too, with Polished alloy instead of chrome-plating, and a black locking mechanism.
These use the early cap mounting style of having the collar screw down onto the plate, which means the collars and plates need to be removed to remove the wheel. Possibly would make things a little more frustrating when cleaning, but is no doubt a theft deterrent on top of the lock itself.

Hiro V-1 vs. the Hiro V1-R plate.
One of my favourite details of the wheel; with the bright colours, and friendly, almost comic-like fonts.
Interesting seeing the addition of the '-R' means a bit of the text ('By Hiro Engineering') had to be dropped. The V1-R plates also weren't directional like the ones used on the V-1's; which is a bit of a shame. Its such a subtle detail, but a really nice touch...

Period advertising. Seriously rad..

..and a couple brochure-scans and a pricelist, courtesy of ZeroPromises Blog, here.



Done. 
My favourite era of wheels, my favourite manufacturer in that era, and one of my absolute favourite of their designs.
A little wear and tear for their age; but great colourway and sizes are just icing on the cake. I'm seriously stoked to have these..






Monday 18 August 2014

Late Sixty...

Really neat, restored/tidied, 1989 FJ62 Toyota Landcruiser VX.

1989 makes this the very tail-end of the 60-series' 10-year production run, with the updated front-end and fuel-injection on the 4litre 3F-E petrol six.

Loving the chrome against the black on this..

Leaf-sprung, solid-axle, front and rear; standard chromed steel wheels, and a very agressive set of Toyo's..

Just as neat inside, as it is out. Everything thoroughly re-trimmed..


I love it.
Overall makes its intentions pretty clear, that anything more than a dusty road is a no-go; with the vibe of those restored Grand-Cherokee's or G-Wagons that just spend their time rolling around town... but I couldn't care less.
Bring on the tire-shine.






Tuesday 12 August 2014

Oldschool HR30..

Tough 1984 HR30 Nissan Skyline GT EX Coupe..

..Modified with what seems like overall a pretty oldskool vibe to it.

Outside, the 14 or 15" SSR MK1's with tall-profile tyres are likely to blame.. interesting choice, but do look good...

I really like how this sits.
Not sure whats going on with that second exhaust cutout though..

Inside is neat and relatively original, with just the usual wheel/shifter/pedals and a pair of miss-matched Recaros. Love seeing the stock head-unit in these - which is pretty rare to see. The odd non-standard shape makes most with aftermarket units look a little butchered..

This however, is the star of the show..
The single-cam inline 6cyl is breathing through triple carbs; and according to this car dealers goo-net listing, the is possibly stroked to 3litres.
I honestly prefer this generation of Skyline FJ20-powered (as a DR30), but the L Nissan straight-6 feels truer to the Skyline name (being a 6cyl, not 4).. and a long production run in many performance models, means it still has a ton of potential and support today.


This driveline combination on these wheels, cant help but make me feel like id be driving a classic Skyline or Fairlady, dressed up as an R30. An S30 Z that's all business..